Boiler-tube-cleaning brush



Sept. 7 1926.

V c. c. GERHARDT BOILER TUBE CLEANING BRUSH Filed March 2 1926 INVENTORC/mezaa CERHAP07 ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 7, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,598,771 PATENT OFFICE.

emanate c. oamanr, or new YORK, u. YQ nonaa-runa-cnmmue maven.

A lication ma Ia'rch 24, 1926. semi m. 91,003.

This invention relates to a new and improved boiler tube cleaner.

Heretofore, as is well known, great d1fiiculty has been experienced ineffect vely cleaning boiler tubes of the smaller dlameters; in fact, theusual method has been to employ a twisted Wire brush render ng theoperation tediou uncertain in action and costly.

For larger tubes than those above specified, the cleaning has beensatisfactorily taken care of by the employment and use of hollow-coredwire brushes, but unfortunately the construction of such brushes is suchthat they cannot be made in sizes small enough to permit them to beuntilized in the cleaning of the smaller tubes above referred to.

N ow the main object of the present invention is to make a brush of thetype already used in the cleaning of large tubes, modifying itsstructure in such manner as to enable it to be effectively used forcleaning boiler tubes of small diameters and so replace the slow andineffective twisted wire brush method hitherto employed.

Withthe above and other ob ects in view, the invention will now bedescribed with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which 1 Figure1 is a plan view of a brush constructed according to the presentinvention;

Fig. 2 is a central sectional view through the brush,

Fig. 3 is aplan view of a detail;

Figs. 4 to 7 are transverse sections showing the disposition of varioussockets; and,

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the solid core of the brush flattened out toshow the disposition of the various sockets therein.

As will be seen from the various figures of the drawings, the brushaccording to this, invention consists of a central solid preferablycylindrical body portion 10 of metal, at each end of which are providedintegral screw-threaded portions 12 of reduced diameter, one of which isadapted to receive a cap 14 as shown in Fig. 1, when-the brush is to beused in connection with a rotating flexible shaft, one end of whichshaft would of course be secured to the threaded portion 12 at the otherend of the brush.

When the brush is to be used with compressed air as the propelling forceone threaded portion 12 is provided with a cap 14 and the other with acupped washer 16 transversely of the sockets bored therethrough 22 shownin Figure 3 to which can be attached the desired pull throu hs. When thebrush is used with a fiexi 1e shaft as above described, and it shows sis of wear in one direction the cap 14 an shaft. can

be readily reversed as to position on the brush as will be understood.

The circular solid body portion 10 of the brush is bored to provide aplurality of sockets 23 to 23 adapted to receive tufts 24 -to 24 ofwire. Of course the number of. sockets and tufts employed may bevariedas may be found convenient or necessarv.

Each of said sockets, as shown, extends transversely of the body 10 ofthe brush, and comprises an enlarged bore 31, adapted to receive andhouse the inner portion of a tuft of wire, and a reduced bore 32 ofsmaller diameter ing means, preferably a lengthfof wire, is passed. Thedifference in the diameters of the bores -31 and 32 produces a shoulderor abutment 33 between the bores which serves as a seat against whichthe tuft firmly rests when the latter is pulled into position by theretaining wire. The shoulder 33 positively limits inward movement of thetufts.

The said sockets are bored in rows spirally,

disposed lon itudinall of the bod ortion 10 (see Fig. 8). y y p Figs. atto 7 inclusive are views taken body 10 showing the disposition of thefirst three and last of the and from these figures can also be seen themethod employed in securing the tufts of wire in place, each of thetufts being formed, as wlll be cleai' from the drawings, from aplurality of lengths of wire doubled in half.

To refer first of all therefore to Fi 4 a tuft 24 is taken and about itsdoubled and is secured one end of a length of wire 26, this beingaccomplished by bending the wire back upon itself and twisting such endround the body of the wire asshown at 28.- The other end of said wire isthen threaded through the first socket 23 until the tuft 24 is pulledfirmly against the through which the tuft retainand pulled. tight 1fcrence of the body and threaded into the smaller end of the next socket23 (Fig.

5), out through the larger end thereof, doubled back upon itself overthe doubled end of the next tuft 24", back through said.

socket again, pulled tight to draw the tuft 24 firmly into place and isL then carried further round the circumference of the body 10 where itis threaded into the smaller end of the next socket 24 .(Fig. 6) and theoperations explained in connection with socket 23 repeated in order tosecure the tuft 24 into its socket 23, and so on, until all of thesockets have been provided with tufts, the

last tuft 24 being secured in place by passing the wire through thesmaller end of thelast socket 23, out through the larger end thereof,doubling it upon itself over the doubled end of the last tuft, passingit back through the socket again and then finally twisting it uponitself as shown at 30 in Fig. 7. x

This peculiar arrangement of sockets and tufts and the system of wiringthe latter in place in the former have been achieved only afterconsiderable difficulty and numerous experiments; it will be noted thatno two tufts are diametrically opposed in the same transverse plane ofthe body 10 and this is essential in. order. to permit of the latterbeing made small enough to permit the brush to be used in tubes of smalldiameter. The enlarged retaining bore 31 terminates substantially at themajor longitudinal axis of the body of the brush. This arrangementpermits the bores and tufts to be positioned in slightly overlappingrelation so that the maximum number of convolutions is possible for adefinite length of handle. It will be clear that if the tufts extendedentirely through the handle or even just slightly beyond the major axisof the handle, the tufts would necessarily have to be spaced sufficientdistance to afford clearance be tween adjacent tufts, and consequentlythe brush would contain fewer tufts than is possible with myconstruction. Furthermore, the wiring is simple, being straight throughand back through each socket, and then round the periphery of the bodyfor a short distance to the next socket, there being no turning'orbending of the wire within the said body. This arrangement permits ofreadily providing a worn out brush with a. new set of wire tufts, thusreducing upkeep to a minimum.

In practice brushes constructed according to. the pres it invention haveproved an instantaneous success and have at once been adopted to re lacetwisted wire brushes heretofore used or the cleaning of boiler tubes ofthe smaller diameters. The present brush will successfully negotiate thesharp bends found more particularly in what are known asexpress typeboilers. and this has been made possible in the present brush by keepingdown the overall length thereof, while at the same time the particulararrangement of-so'ckets employed provides a maximum number of wire tuftsgiving the desired thorough cleaning of the tubes.

' What I claim and desire to secure by United States Letters Patentis 1. A brush for cleaning boiler tubes comprising a solid bodyportionof metal'having a plurality of sockets bored therethrough an arranged inspiral formation, each socket comprising a portion of alarger diameterand a portion of smaller diameter, an abutment formed at the inner endof the larger portion, a tuft of wire disposed in the larger portion ofeach socket and seated against said abutment, a wire for retaining saidtufts in position and extending from the smaller portion of each socketround the circumference of the body portion to the smaller portion ofthe next socket, and means on one end of said body portion to detachablyreceive the brush actuating means.

2. A brush for cleaning boiler tubes of small diameters comprising asolid body or.- tion of metal, having a plurality of sec ets boredtherethrough and arranged in spiral formation with relation to thelongitudinal axis of the brush, each socket comprising a portion oflarger diameter terminating adjacent the longitudinal axis and a portionof smaller diameter, a shoulderformed at the junction of the larger andsmaller portions, a tuft of wiredisposed in the larger portion of eachsocket, a wire for retaining said tufts in position against the shoulderand being extended upthrough the smaller portion of each socket, doubledover the tuft of wire therein, returned back through saidsmaller portionand then carried round the periphery of the body to the smaller portionof the next socket, and screwed portions on the ends of said bodyportion to detachably receive brush actuating mechamsm.

3. A brush for cleaning boiler tubes comprising a solid body portion ofmetal having a plurality of sockets extending transversely through saidbody and arranged in close spiral formation, each of said sockets comprising a bore of large diameter and a bore of reduced diameter, ashoulder formed at the junctionof said bores, a tuft of wire in each ofthe large bores seated against said shoulder, each of said tufts beingpositioned to slightly overlap adjacent tufts, and a continuous wireextending into the small bores to retain the tufts in position.

4. A brush for cleaning boiler tubes comprising a solid body portion ofmetal havmg aplurality of sockets extending transversely through saidbody and arranged in close spiral formation, each of said socketscomprisin a bore of large diameter and a bore of re uced diameter, ashoulder formed at the junction of said bores, a tuft of wire in each ofthe large bores seated against said shoulder, each of said tufts being051- tioned to slightly overlap adjacent tu s, a

continuous wire extending into the small boresto retain the tufts inposition, and w means on each end of said body portion for detachablyreceiving the brush operating mechanism.

In testimony whereof I name to this specification.

CHARLES C. GERHARDT.

have signed my

